GARLAND, TX -- A fire has erupted at a chemical plant in a suburban Dallas industrial district, sending flames roiling about 50 feet into the air and a black column of smoke drifting high into the sky.

The fire erupted about 3:30 p.m. Friday at an Ashland Chemical plant in Garland.

There was no immediate word of injuries, but a quarter-mile radius around the plant has been evacuated. Meanwhile, the smoke column was drifting toward north Dallas borne by light winds.

Fire Capt. Merrill Balanciere says he doesn't know yet what caused the fire. He adds that firefighters were delayed in approaching the fire because of the close proximity of chemical storage tanks.

A few storage tanks, much taller than the building and located just beside it, were steaming from their tops but it was not immediately clear what they contained. Firefighters were cooling the tanks by spraying them with water.

Firefighters are also tasked with identifying what kind of material is burning in order to battle the blaze.

Garland Fire Department Capt. Merrill Balanciere said there were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.

Police have cordoned off the area and Garland police representative Joe Harn said an evacuation was ordered for a quarter-mile perimeter around the plant.

Dallas County health officials are also at the scene.

A Sky 4 helicopter crew reported hearing a large explosion that led them to the scene. Several FOX 4 viewers also said they heard a booming sound.

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Someone commented on another thread about all the explosions recently. Help me here. There was an explosion in Loisiana recently, then one in Russian at a munitions depot, then Indiana, the oil rig explosion today, this one in Garland, and there was another massive fire in the same area at a chemical plant a couple of months ago...

A few storage tanks, much taller than the building and located just beside it, were steaming from their tops but it was not immediately clear what they contained. Firefighters were cooling the tanks by spraying them with water.

Firefighters are also tasked with identifying what kind of material is burning in order to battle the blaze.

Garland Fire Department Capt. Merrill Balanciere said there were no immediate reports of injuries or deaths.

Police have cordoned off the area and Garland police representative Joe Harn said an evacuation was ordered for a quarter-mile perimeter around the plant.

Dallas County health officials are also at the scene.

A Sky 4 helicopter crew reported hearing a large explosion that led them to the scene. Several FOX 4 viewers also said they heard a booming sound.

Quoting: Texas2012

Damn you'd think those toxic places would have it all mapped out in case of emergency, what chemicals are where ... this sucks and I pray for those firefighters.

Someone commented on another thread about all the explosions recently. Help me here. There was an explosion in Loisiana recently, then one in Russian at a munitions depot, then Indiana, the oil rig explosion today, this one in Garland, and there was another massive fire in the same area at a chemical plant a couple of months ago...